Mid-Am’s Midwinter Conference Offers Well-Rounded Education

The Mid-America Horticultural Trade Show (Mid-Am) has revealed the link up for the Midwinter Conference scheduled to take place Jan. 17-19 at Lakeside Center in Chicago’s McCormick Place Convention Center. Top businesses and industry speakers will present timely and relevant topics related to horticultural developments, human resource issues, management techniques, marketing and more, offering a comprehensive educational experience. Popular returning speakers, along with new presenters, will offer essential information on the latest issues important to green industry professionals.

The Midwinter Conference is presented in tracks, including landscape, ornamental growers, trees, exterior lighting, retail, management and green roofs. Following are highlights of some of the sessions to be presented at the 2007 Midwinter Conference. The Landscape Track contains topics ranging from perennials, roses and annuals to retaining walls, design trends and natural areas. On Jan. 17, Perennial Plant Association award-winner Stephanie Cohen returns to the conference to discuss how to add interest to containers with “Potted Perennials.” On Jan. 18, veteran Midwinter Conference lecturer Jim Nau of Ball Horticulture will reveal new and less familiar varieties of annuals, perennials, tropical plants and ornamental grasses in his session, “Tried and True and New Plants, Too.” On Jan. 19, Charlie Anderson and Dr. Keith Zary of Jackson Perkins Wholesale discuss how to select, sell and grow the best roses in their session, “Modern Roses: Easier Than You Think.”

The Ornamental Growers Track on Jan. 17 features “Chicagoland Grows—Behind the Scenes of a Unique Plant Introduction Program,” a primer on the distinctive program that combines the research resources of the Chicago Botanic Garden and the Morton Arboretum with the production and marketing expertise of the Ornamental Growers Association.

The Trees Track on Jan. 18 includes “How to Identify Quality Stock Trees and Shrubs,” a session presented by Ron Zillmer that discusses the process of getting trees and shrubs to market and the criteria for selecting the best plants.

The Management Track on Jan. 18 includes sessions covering immigration, safety and hiring practices. Highlights include Craig Regelbrugge, senior director of Government Relations for ANLA, discussing “Immigration Laws Affecting the Landscape/Green Industry,” and a representative from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) who will explain OSHA’s “Safety Pays’ e-tool and discuss key elements of a comprehensive safety program.

Details of all sessions for the 2007 Midwinter Conference, as well as the pre-show Management Workshop, and the newly added Irrigation Association classes and exams, can be found on Mid-Am’s Web site at www.midam.org.